Brand Logos: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

When it comes to your business’ branding strategy, establishing your company’s logo is one of the most critical tasks. Your logo will be pervasive throughout all of your marketing campaigns, and it’s one of the most prominent branding elements that people will think of when someone mentions your company. Your brand’s logo should be memorable, versatile, and consistent, all the while giving your audience a sense of what your brand is all about. Unfortunately, many companies haven’t exactly done a great job of keeping those goals in mind when establishing their logo, learning the hard way what it takes to create a positive brand experience through their logo.

Not sure what it takes to create a killer brand logo? To give you a better idea, here are some companies that have either failed or flourished in the logo department.

KFC’s Unique Logo Redesign & Launch

In 2006, Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) launched a new logo, changing the Colonel’s appearance so he was pictured with a new, red apron. This was a big deal for the company, as its logo hadn’t been changed in over a decade. So why did they make the decision to revamp their logo? They wanted the image of the Colonel to be clearer and more energizing. The new, rejuvenated logo demonstrated an excitement and readiness to cook and serve.

Gap’s Logo Redesign Disaster

In 2010, Gap decided it wanted to change its logo into a more modern version and abruptly announced a new logo. The clothing company was greeted by backlash from thousands of angry customers in social media, who were attached to the recognizable blue box with ‘GAP’ written in the center. For Gap, the saying, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” would’ve been sound advice. Its customers were already loyal to the original logo.

Apple’s Perfect Logo Rebrand

Today, we think of the Apple logo as a simple but sleek design, representative of the Apple brand. But it wasn’t always that way. The logo originally had a picture of Isaac Newton sitting under an apple tree. Eventually, it was changed into a rainbow picture of an apple. And finally, it changed into the logo we know and love today.

Google’s Successful Rebellion Against Logo Design Best Practices

Surprisingly, the Google logo actually goes against a few standard branding rules. It uses colors that seem to clash with each other. There is a slight drop shadow, which is something logos aren’t supposed to have. It even uses a serif font, which is hardly unique, and very rare for a logo to have.

Starbucks’ Confusing Logo

The Starbucks logo has always had the text “Starbucks Coffee” surrounding an image of a twin-tailed mermaid, also known as a siren in Greek mythology, which is indicative of the company’s heritage from the Pacific Northwest. For those who are unfamiliar with the Starbucks logo, the addition of these words has always helped to explain what the logo represents. However, in 2011, Starbucks updated its logo to get rid of the words and leave the mermaid, in hopes that they had enough brand recognition.

Pepsi’s Boring Logo

Over the years, there have been quite a few changes to the Pepsi logo. Most recently, Pepsi removed the company name altogether and left the image of the ball.